This morning I met with one of the many groups who are analysing different parts of our Children Draw Playing data for different purposes using different philosophical and methodological lenses. This morning I met with the group lead by Dr Belinda Downey that was analysing "How is playing good for the world?" The children had such wonderful insights. Here is some of what we have learned from them.
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| Belinda Downey, Sharynne, Katrina Gersbach, Kate Freire, Laura Hoffman |
Play is recognised across the globe as important to children's wellbeing and development. In the early years, play is understood as a valuable learning tool with which children develop skills that support engagement in their world across their life. Children's perspectives about play are important yet children's voices are often underrepresented in research. Drawing offers one way to support children to express their lived experience without relying on language, reducing barriers related to age, ability, and linguistic or cultural background.
The aim of this study was to explore children’s understandings of why play is good for the world.
During the 2024 Early Childhood Voices Conference, children were invited to create a drawing or artwork of play. A total of 83 drawings were received from children aged between 1 and 12 years from 10 different countries. University ethical approval, parental consent and children’s assent were gained. The artworks were digitally submitted to the Children Draw Playing Global Online Gallery (https://earlychildhoodresearch.csu.domains/early-childhood-voices-conference-2024/children-draw-playing/). An interdisciplinary team of 20 researchers conducted the study and nine researchers considered the children’s text-responses.
Most children (74.7%) drew themselves playing with someone and portrayed themselves as happy (81.9%). The drawings often displayed physical or active play, outside, in parks and playgrounds, or at home.
A conventional content analysis was conducted on children’s text-based responses to “How is playing good for the world?” Themes were: Playing makes the world happy (n=16), keeps us healthy and energetic (n=17), is fun and entertains us (n=15), brings people together (n=9), and we can try new things (n=9). One child said “it’s not” and three children said “I don’t know”.
This research contributes to a deeper understanding of children's lived experience of play, why it is an important part of their everyday lives and what play can offer the world.
